Transforming Lives

The Boko Haram insurgency in northeastern Nigeria has created a culture of fear and distrust among religious groups in Michika, a local government area in Adamawa state. This distrust is prominently seen among Muslim and Christian groups who blame each other for the insurgency.

With four lively kids, Ihunwo wasn’t too worried when 7-year-old Winner fell while playing at their home in the Obio Akpor local governance area of Rivers state, Nigeria. Winner later developed a lump on her back and, although it looked strange, it didn’t initially hurt much, so Ihunwo dismissed it as “just a bump.”

Boko Haram and its separate ISIS-West Africa faction have been terrorizing northeast Nigeria since 2009 and 2016, respectively. In that time, Boko Haram has killed tens of thousands of people, kidnapped hundreds of schoolchildren and aid workers, and displaced more than 2.2 million people within Nigeria and the greater Lake Chad Basin.

It was a good day when Ramatu*, a widowed mother in northeast Nigeria, first used an electronic voucher to purchase food: “I was so happy. I danced when I got home, telling my children and grandchildren that our days of hunger have gone."

After graduating with a degree in computer science, Ekezie, 34, stayed in the United States to work in the oil and gas sector with the hope of eventually returning to Nigeria. By the time he returned to Lagos, the downturn of Nigeria’s petroleum sector led Ekezie to look at other careers.